BEST OF THE BROKERSn February 14, 2010 BT GROUP Charles Stanley says last week’s third quarter results from BT were positive, particularly for overall improvement in profitability, and a small uplift in full year cash flow guidance was also welcome. “However, overshadowing all this was the news on the pension fund, which was overall worse than expectations,” Stanley said. SMITH & NEPHEW Edison [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS February 14, 2010 Marriott Harrison The City law firm has appointed Jill Andrew and Bob Cordran, pictured, as partners in its employment team. Andrew joins from Dawsons and was also previously a senior partner at employment boutique Archon. Cordran formerly worked at Thomas Eggar, Simmons & Simmons and Olswang, and has particular expertise in advising on issues related [...]
SSL increases stake in condoms packager February 12, 2010 DUREX maker SSL has paid around £140m to up its stake in Russian condoms packager and distributor BLBV to 75 per cent. The firm, which also makes Scholl footcare products, said it had agreed an option to buy the rest of the business next year. Garry Watts, SSL’s chief executive, said: “We have been delighted [...]
Media stocks are starting to look very cheap February 11, 2010 A COMMON joke in media circles is that anyone with a pound burning a hole in their pocket can become a newspaper proprietor. Russian tycoon Alexander Lebedev picked up the Evening Standard for £1, while it is said that some buyers offered just $1 for BusinessWeek (Bloomberg eventually paid $5m). Of course, these publications were [...]
Cole out for season with broken ankle February 11, 2010 CHELSEA defender Ashley Cole is sweating on his place in England’s World Cup squad after being ruled out for three months with a broken ankle. Cole, who suffered the injury during Wednesday’s 2-1 defeat to Everton, is unlikely to play again this season unless Chelsea reach the Champions League final. The left-back will miss England’s [...]
Daily Mail is confident of media revival February 10, 2010 NEWSPAPER group Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT) today hinted that the media sector may be finding its feet after a very tough 2009 although it still remains cautious in its outlook. The FTSE 250 group saw revenue fall eight per cent on an underlying basis to £482m in the three months to December as [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING February 8, 2010 FINANCE TIMES DE SHAW MOBILISES TEAM TO BUY DISTRESSED ASSETS OF FUND RIVALS DE Shaw, the third largest hedge fund, has established an in-house team to look at buying portfolios of distressed assets and is targeting the holdings of rival hedge funds. The DE Shaw Portfolio Acquisitions Unit, launched last year, aims to capitalise on [...]
Gazprom third quarter profits up on joint ventures and currencies February 1, 2010 Russian state-run energy company Gazprom posted a forecast-beating 33 per cent rise in third-quarter net profit, thanks to successful investments in jointly controlled entities and a foreign exchange gain. Gazprom’s shares closed up 1.8 per cent at 189.85 roubles (£3.93) on Moscow’s MICEX, bucking a downward trend on the broader market, where the oil and [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS February 1, 2010 GMT Communications Partners The private equity group has promoted Natalie Tydeman, pictured, to partner and Vikram Krishna to principal. Tydeman joined the group in 2007 as a senior adviser from Fremantle media, where she was a senior vice president. Krishna has been at GMT since 2005. He was formerly a manager at PwC, focusing on [...]
Fabregas ignoring Gunners’ critics as Chelsea clash looms February 1, 2010 ARSENAL captain Cesc Fabregas is refusing to accept their title challenge is over, and has urged his team-mates to prove the doubters wrong against Chelsea on Sunday. A crushing 3-1 loss at home to Manchester United at the weekend has left the Gunners five points behind the Blues, and feeling utterly deflated. Even Arsenal forward [...]